What a lost dog can teach you about business processes

What a lost dog can teach you about business processes

My boyfriend Nelson and I lost a dog on Sunday.

And when I say “lost” I don’t mean the dog died. I mean the dog ran away. And ran away in a huge forest. Huge like 50,369 acres (78.70 sq mi or 203.84 km² if you’re not from the US). And to make matters much, much worse, it was our neighbor’s dog. A dog who, it turns out, had no identification on her collar and no microchip either.

Sigh.

So, Monday, I’m driving back to the forest, hoping the dog will be somewhere near where we were hiking.

On the way, I’m listening to NPR (National Public Radio) trying to distract myself from worrying.

And lo and behold, on the program Here and Now they start talking about business systems! An expert from MAPI, the Manufacturers Alliance for Productivity and Innovation, was discussing how smart individuals and companies are investing in training, documenting their processes, and working on getting their operations running more efficiently.

Of course, this got me thinking. And the long and short of it is, if you want to work on making your business more efficient and getting your processes documented, the place to start is with YOU.

Oh! And yes, I finally found the dog. She was in an empty campsite licking the cold frying pans sitting on the campstove. Ha!

Sincerely,

Angie

P.S. Getting a handle on your time and documenting your systems gives you a jump-start on training and delegation. And seriously, effective delegation has a near-miraculous effect on your revenues, client numbers, and stress levels. The first two go UP – the third one comes DOWN!